Inventure Foods to offer Nathan’s Famous snacks

PHOENIX — Inventure Foods has teamed up with Nathan’s Famous to offer ready-to-eat snacks that will be available at retailers this fall.

Inventure Foods said that its lineup will include Nathan’s crunchy crinkle fries, which will be available in cheddar cheese, chili cheese and honey mustard flavors and packaged in 2- to 3.5-oz. bags for a suggested retail price to $1.99 to $2.19. Additionally, Nathan’s crinkle cut potato chips will be available in a single-serve, 1.25-oz. size that will retail from $.99 to $1.29.

"The common denominator within all of our successful snack foods is creating great tasting products that connect with the brand," Inventure Foods Steve Sklar, SVP marketing said. "The Nathan’s Famous menu offers a wide variety of diverse, inspired flavors that will allow us to develop unique snack chips that stand out from the typical ‘sour-cream-and-onion’ crowd."

Extreme concerns raised with second season of ‘Extreme Couponing’

SILVER SPRING, Md. — The second season of "Extreme Couponing" debuted on TLC Wednesday evening, and with the new season came a renewed concern as to how extreme couponers will impact value promotions at retail.

That may be one of the more significant concerns for retailers, according to a Bloomberg report published Wednesday — that promotions are attracting one-time buyers who cherry-pick their way through the weekly shopping trip in place of loyal consumers.

According to the Bloomberg report, retail-specific loyalty programs are the answer. For example, CVS Caremark awards "Extra Bucks" to its ExtraCare shoppers who buy a grouping of items. Those "Extra Bucks" can only be redeemed on future shopping visits to CVS.

According to a Drug Store News poll earlier this year, 57% of respondents deemed extreme couponing bad for business. Another big problem with extreme couponing is "how it’s affecting the availability of product for other customers," David Fikes, director of consumer affairs for the Food Marketing Institute, told DSN in its June cover story on the subject. "When someone comes in with coupons and just wipes out a whole shelf of product, that’s not … proper use of couponing."

TLC’s"Extreme Couponing"series has averaged 1.9 million total viewers during its first season, according to TLC.

"’Extreme Couponing’ has struck a chord with our viewers and has sparked a passion in people who are looking for creative ways to save money," stated Amy Winter, general manager of TLC. "The series is creating even more super shoppers, and we are lining our shelves with their remarkable stories."

Report: Costco calls for more attention to cantaloupe safety

NEW YORK — Costco Wholesale is calling on the farms that grow cantaloupes and the companies that ship them to be more vigilant in preventing contamination amid one of the deadliest outbreaks of foodborne disease in recent history, according to published reports.

The New York Times quoted Costco food safety head Craig Wilson as saying the cantaloupe industry needed to change its ways, noting that Costco is regarded for its expertise in food safety. Wilson said the Issaquah, Wash.-based retailer would probably require testing of melons for pathogens and that the industry should find new ways to remove contaminants.

On Sept. 14, Granada, Colo.-based Jensen Farms recalled its Rocky Ford-brand cantaloupes following a multistate outbreak of listeriosis, a deadly disease caused by Listeria monocytogenes bacteria. On Sept. 19, the Food and Drug Administration confirmed the presence of the bacteria in samples of the cantaloupes. Since then, 72 people have become sick and 13 have died.

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